The museum was founded in 1952, and today, it features nearly 5,000 living animals and nearly 250 species. There also are more than 50,000 plant specimens and nearly 17,000 mineral and fossil specimens. The facility is perhaps best known for its live animal demonstrations, which include Raptor Free Flight shows every day from mid-October through mid-April.

The Desert Museum was the only Arizona zoo to make the list of finalists, but other competing zoos in the region include the Denver Zoo; the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, in Colorado Springs, Colorado; the Living Desert Zoo and Gardens, in Palm Desert, California; and the San Diego Zoo.